Blog

Event Recap: Championing TDM In Allston-Brighton

August 4, 2021

Written by Scott Mullen, Transportation Demand Management Director 

On Thursday, July 15^th, A Better City (ABC) convened a joint meeting in cooperation with the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) and the Boston Transportation Department (BTD). The invitees included the largest and most influential developers, institutions, businesses and other key stakeholders in the neighborhoods of Allston and Brighton. In the session BPDA Director, Brian Golden, and ABC President, Rick Dimino outlined a collaborative transportation vision for the future. The focus was to demonstrate the potential collective power of those working in the neighborhood and to promote collaboration toward a shared vision.

This meeting built upon a conversation started in late 2019 when ABTMA convened members to discuss aggregating existing shuttle services to reduce redundant vehicles, achieve savings through scale, and expand coverage through coordination. Paused due to COVID, this effort has resumed with financial support from the BPDA.

This past June in direct response to the recommendation of the Allston Brighton Mobility Study, the BPDA Board approved funding to conduct a Neighborhood Transit Connector (NTC) plan. The goal is to identify current and future transit gaps in the neighborhood and to explore options that will broaden transportation choices, reduce SOVs, and minimize particulate and GhG emissions.

The ABTMA will lead this NTC planning effort and is excited to bring more stakeholders into the conversation and to be part of the process. This will include local elected officials, community groups, city and state level planners, the MBTA, and others. As the pace of new development in Allston-Brighton has rapidly increased in recent years, the need for effective, coordinated and collaborative TDM has become ever more apparent.

If you want to be part of the conversation, please email our TDM Director, Scott Mullen, at mully@abettercity.org to learn more.